Machine for cooling and conditioning cloth.



I. L. SJSTRM.

MACHINE POR COOLING AND CONDITIONING CLOTH.I

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 30, 1913.

1,095,680. Patented May 5, 1914. .2F52

#MMM @MW @f/MM@ TEU STATES PA g i IVAR L. SJSTRM, OF NORTH ANDOVER, MASSACHUSETTS.

MACHINE FOR COOLING AND CONDITIONING CLOTH.

thalasso.

Specicaton of Letters Patent.

Application filed September 30, 1913. Serial No. 792,613.

M which the cloth normally contains and which has been expelled in the operations of dry finishing, and at the same time incidentally cooling the cloth, as it comes in aV heated condition from these operations.

Many substances possess what are called hygrometric properties. This may be briefly described as the property of absorbing and retaining in their natural conditign a certain amount of aqueous vapor. In common with other substances, wool possesses this property to a marked degree, and the wool fiber exposed to usual atmospheric conditions, always contains a certain amount of aqueous vapor.

In the dry finishing of cloth, the atmospheric conditions are far from normal. The first process after cloth comes from the wet processes is to be thoroughly dried. It then goes through various operations, which are carried on in rooms artificially heated and unusually dry, and the final process is usually pressing, which is carried on with the assistance of extreme heat. After undergoing this last process, the cloth is examined, and, in many cases, shipped, while still retaining its more or less dry condition. It is desirable that the cloth should contain the moisture which it is capable of retaining under normal conditions of temperature and atmospheric humidity, as thereby it is softer of texture and has better wearing qualities than when excessively dry.

Many attempts have been made to devise methods of supplying this natural or normal amount of moisture to finished cloth, which is called conditioning the cloth, but all such methods as I am acquainted with have the effect of either making the cloth too wet, that i's giving it more than the natural or normal amount of moisture, or the moisture is supplied unevenly to different parts of the 'same picco, or else the process requires too much time for carrying out to be commer cially practical.

My object is to provide an apparatus or machine which may be employed to restore cloth `to its natural condition and till the Wool pores with the normal amount of aqueous vapor which should be contained; and to supply such vapor uniformly to all parts of theI cloth in a natural expeditious and inexpensive manner.

In the accompanying drawings I- have illustrated a form of apparatus inwhich my invention may be embodied, -such apparatus illustrating the preferred embodiment of th invention.

Figure l is a longitudinalv sectional view of such-an apparatus and Fig. 2 is a cross section of the apparatus on line 2*?J of Fig. l.

The same reference characters indicate the same parts in all the figures.l

The apparatus consists essentially of a box or case a which is entirely closed except for openings b and 0 at its opposite end walls through which the cloth to be treated respectively enters and leaves the case. Within the case and extending from side to side thereof are driving rolls d and guide rolls e, arranged in two series or rows near the top and bottom of the boxv respectively. The web of cloth, which is designated by the letter f passes over and partly around the endmost driving roll d, downwardly and around the first roll e of the lower series, then up and around the second roll d, and so on, passing over and under the rolls d and e respectively until it finally passes over the last roll d of the upper series and so on out through the exit opening o. The rolls Z and e thus guide the cloth so that a relatively' great length of the web is contained within the box and passes back and forth in numerous stretches'or lengths approximately parallel and 'close to one another.

Preferably all of the rolls d are positively driven so as to avoid stretching the cloth while undergoing the conditioning treatment, and for thus driving them I may connect pinions g to the shafts ofrall vsaid rolls, said pinions being on the outside of the case, as shown in Fig. 2, and in mesh with each other, being driven by a driving gear of any suitable character not shown.

Patenten May 5, mit.

ln the bottom of the case is a tray k containing water,`?which is fed by a supply pipe z' and fromwhich an overflow pipe j leads. The water in the tray k furnishes the moisture for conditioning the cloth, and itis brought close to practically the entire length of cloth within thebox by conveyors v la, which are endless aprons of some flexible material which maybe absorbent or not, as desired such as duck, felt, or any other material, suitable for the purpose. Each of these aprons or water conveyors asses about an upper driving roll Z and a ower guide roll m, which is located below the surface of the water in the tray so that the apron constantly dips into the water. Preferably as many as possible of these conveyers are provided, with one conveyer located in each space between the cloth guiding rolls e. The rolls Z which support and drive the water conveyers are driven by any suitable means such as pinions u, shown in Fig. 2, each roll being preferably equipped with a pinion and all of the pinions being intermeshed and driven by a suitable driver. The water conveyers are driven at a slow rate of speed, just suiiicient to keep them well supplied with water, while the cloth being treated is driven at a high rate of speed.

It will be seen that the water conveyers 7c.

provide means for carrying water -into close proximity with practically the entire length of the cloth in the conditioning machine. Only the relatively short lengths of the cloth which pass around the upper rolls are out of the influence of the water supplying means. By properly designing the sizes of' the varii ous rolls it is possible to place the water carriers as near to or as far from the adjacent stretches of the cloth as may be necessary to get the best results. The water carriers should not be in 'contact with the clot-h, be cause if they were the cloth would be dampened too much, but they should be and are near enough to supplya damp atmosphere from which the cloth is able to absorb just the amount of moisture needed to give it the proper condition. Thus the cloth throughout its passage through the machine is exposed to a humid atmosphere, and is thus exposed long enough to absorb'the amount of moisture needed to supply the natural moisture to the cloth. By properly 'proportioning the length ofthe case and passing the cloth back and forth across the case a reater or less amount of times and provi ing a corresponding number of water conveyers, it is possible to subject the cloth to the moist atmosphere as long as may be necessary toabsorb the desired quantity of moisture and at the same time feed the cloth through the machine as rapidly as may be desired.

The humid atmosphere produced by evaperation of the water is ordinarily cool, inasmuch as the water is not heated at all. Pref- Loaaeeo erably and ordinarily the water is chilled in the warm seasons of the year so that the atmosphere through which the cloth passes will be decidedly cool. ln the winter season when water is taken from streams and ordinary water supplies, the water is naturally cool enough so that there is no necessity for cooling it artificially.

The principle on which the machine or V apparatus above described operates is based cloth web in the casing. Vapor is constantly given oil'I by the water so exposed, according to natural laws, so that the entire length of cloth is contained in amoist or humid atmosphere of substantially uniform humidity. The cloth is not actually brought into contact with the water at any point and so is not wetted, but it is exposed to an atmosphere sufficiently moist to allow it to absorb the quantity of aqueous vapor which it normally contains, this being the amount which thebers of the cloth will absorb from ordinarily humid atmospheric air on a clear day, and is not sucient to make the cloth feel wet or even damp to the touch, or to shrink the cloth. y

The beneficial effects derived by the cloth exposed to this treatment are many, and among them may be named the following: First, the cloth is evenly and quickly cooled, which leaves it in the best condition for examination. Second, the feel and handle of the cloth is greatly improved, the dry and harsh qualities due to the absence of natural moisture being obviated,` and the natural condition being restored. Third, the

color, which has been changed by the drying lfrom two to tive per cent., and this increase in weight is a natural one which will be permanently retained by the cloth. Fifth, the strength of the cloth is-increased, as the moisture absorbed has the effect of binding the fibers together, thus causing them to act in unison.V Sixth, the .process does not shrink the cloth or destroy the finish given by pressing, which is a desirable effect.

The operation of the machine is extremely simple, and its life is practically interminable. The wear on the moving parts is inappreciable and the power to run the machine very slight, so that it can be kept in use for an indefinite time without renewals or repairs and at lvery slight expense.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. A machine for conditioning cloth comprising guiding means over which a web of cloth may be passed in substantially parallel stretches and means for ex osing water in spaces between such stretc les but out of actual contact with the cloth.

2. A machine for conditioning cloth comprising means for iding a traveling web of cloth in a plurality of stretches of backwardly and forwardly passing lengths, and water containing means-arranged between such stretches or lengths and in such position that the cloth is exposed to the vapor given of by the Water.

8. A cloth conditioning machine comprising guiding means arranged to hold a tra"- elng web of cloth so as to form a number of substantially parallel stretches or lengths, and water containers disposed between and in proximity to adjacent stretches of thel cloth.

4. yA conditioning apparatus comprising a casing, upper and lower rolls Within said casing around which'the cloth to be treated is passed lin a number of substantially vertical stretches, a container for conditioning liquid in said casing, in which the liquid is contained at a level entirely-below the cloth, and traveling 'conveyers dipping into such liquid and ext-ending alongside the stretches of the cloth.

In testimony whereof I have aliixed my signature, in presence of two witnesses.

f IVAR L. sJ'sTRM. 

